Statement By Spokesperson Clayton M. McCleskey On The Operation Of Mobile Cranes In Yemen Port

For Immediate Release

Friday, February 9, 2018

Office of Press Relations

The United States welcomes reports that four U.S.-funded World Food Programme mobile cranes have now begun offloading supplies at Yemen's Hudaydah port. The additional capacity of these cranes will cut in half the average time it takes to unload ships, allowing food, medicine, and other necessities to reach people in need more quickly.

A protracted civil conflict has left more than 22 million people in Yemen in dire need of humanitarian assistance. The country is currently facing the world's largest food-security emergency and worst cholera outbreak.

Since October 2016, the United States has provided nearly $768 million in humanitarian assistance to help the Yemeni people. We welcome the efforts of other donors to address this humanitarian crisis, including the recent $1.5 billion pledge from the Saudi-led coalition to the UN and humanitarian organizations working in Yemen.

The United States urges all parties to continue to allow all humanitarian and commercial goods, including fuel, to enter Yemen through Hudaydah and all other points of access, and to move freely throughout the country to reach people in need. We also urge all parties to protect civilians and the aid workers, who work at great personal risk to assist people in need.

The United States remains committed to supporting the Yemeni people, but only a political solution to this conflict will ultimately advance long-term stability in Yemen and end the suffering of its people.